Controlling mountains and rivers since the Warring States Period

Chapter 234: On the Mountain (Part )

If we only talk about patrol,

Then He Bo wouldn't say much.

Because inspecting the mountains and rivers under his jurisdiction is in accordance with Zhou Li.

Among the princes who were granted titles,
A vast majority of them were arranged to live in an unfamiliar place and establish their own country.

The monarchs of previous generations were not actually very clear about the water and soil conditions in their jurisdictions.

In addition, there were too many barbarians around the vassal states at that time.

Therefore, regular inspections to check on the country's governance and development became a necessary task for many monarchs.

of course,

This will definitely cause trouble to some princes in the beginning.

Because in the early Western Zhou Dynasty, there were indeed cases where princes were ambushed by barbarians on their way to patrol and never returned; or there were cases where the barbarians took advantage of the monarch's absence and directly seized the capital!

But as time goes by,
This tradition is gradually being forgotten.

Only the Qin State,

Because Shang Yang's reforms achieved a transition from a feudal system to a centralized autocratic system and increased the monarch's demands for local control, this custom was passed down.

Starting from King Huiwen,
With the exception of King Xiaowen Ying Zhu who rarely went out for mourning, all the Qin kings in history had tours.

In the first year of unification,
The emperor then went on his first tour:
He inspected the area of Longxi and came to the place where the Qin people once raised horses to worship their ancestors and specifically told them about his achievements.

This is my second trip to Mount Tai from the east.

Although I walked much further than before,
But it is also reasonable.

To He Bo's surprise,

The emperor rejected Xu Fu's request to sail east to seek immortality.

After unification,

Xianyang became the center of the world.

The emperor became the object of everyone's flattery.

Xu Fu, a Taoist priest from Qi, came to Xianyang and met the emperor.

He said to the emperor, "I have a way to make people live forever!"

This aroused the emperor's interest.

He cannot give up his respect for this world.

Because from childhood to adulthood,

Only power is trustworthy.

The emperor could only guarantee that he was the most honorable person during his lifetime.

As for after death?

Who else could know?
So the emperor allowed Xu Fu to continue, wanting to hear what method he had to achieve immortality on earth.

Xu Fu said, "There are traces of immortals on the East China Sea. Your Majesty, please give me three hundred pairs of boys and girls and build a large ship to go out to sea. I will definitely bring back the elixir for your Majesty, so that your Majesty can enjoy the honor of the world forever."

He swore with great confidence and his tone was very solemn, as if he had absolutely not lied and was absolutely able to complete the task.

But the emperor was furious.

"Going east to the sea?"

"If there really is an immortal in the sea, I'm afraid he will only love the people of Qi more!"

When it comes to immortals,

The emperor then thought of his childhood playmates.

When it comes to crossing the East,

He thought of Qi Wang's younger brother Tian Jia, who had not been found until now.

Because the death of King Jian of Qi was due to the Qin people's inconsistency, the people of Qi could not help but sympathize with this mediocre last monarch.

Because of the pain of losing his country, King Jian of Qi's status in the hearts of the people was further enhanced.

After all, memories and personal emotions,
It can beautify many things.

However, Qi Wang Jian's brother Tian Jia managed to escape and there has been no news of him since then.

Therefore, there were rumors in Qi:
"The sons of Tian Qi will eventually return like lightning!"

"The counterattack on the mainland is just around the corner!"

The emperor, sitting in Xianyang City, was also angered by such remarks and ordered the arrest of these undisciplined evildoers.

right now,

Xu Fu suggested to him to go to sea.

The first thing the emperor thought of was whether he had colluded with Tian Jia who had fled to the east.

As for the situation in the East China Sea,

Because Qi Prime Minister Hou Sheng had accepted too many bribes from Qin, he had already told the Qin people everything he knew.

So the emperor knew,
There is a large island outside the East China Sea.
Many years ago, the Qi people crossed the sea and multiplied.
But there are no gods.

As for the "Queen Mother of the West" in the West?
You must know that during the time of Duke Xian, the State of Qin had already opened up trade routes to the Western Regions.

Now a hundred years have passed. How could the emperor not know what is in the west?
East and west sides,

There were no gods. The only one that showed up had already flown away.

then,

The emperor drove Xu Fu away.

Those alchemists who claimed that they could find immortals and obtain elixirs for the emperor as long as the emperor sponsored them were all driven away or arrested.

But he kept some of it.

Stay in Xianyang to make pills for yourself.

Regarding seeking help from the immortals,
The emperor had no hope.

But he still hopes to live forever.

However, you can just take the drugs in Xianyang City.

The reason for running to such a far place as Mount Tai was essentially to consolidate their rule.

"There's no difference between those Confucian scholars and the alchemists in Xianyang City!"

He Bo waved his wings and said to the emperor.

"I know."

The reason why those Confucian scholars promoted the wonders of Mount Tai was, to a large extent, that they hoped to expand the influence of Qi and Lu on the world.

In the myths of the Xia Dynasty,

Speaking of ancient gods, they are actually Western gods.

For example, "Queen Mother of the West" is a representative example.

The reason for this is that the place where the Zhou people rose up was relatively west, so they wanted to show the sacredness of their homeland.

Later, the Chu people "did not submit to Zhou" and gave rise to the mythology of the Nine Songs to demonstrate their disagreements with the Zhou emperor in all aspects.

And now,
The Confucian scholars in Qi behaved in this way.

In essence, it was a threat that "the areas of Qi and Lu are generally dissatisfied with Qin" and demanded that the emperor make some concessions to the interests of Shandong.

The emperor was indeed willing to give in a little.
Because he hoped that his rule could last for a long time and that the world could be fundamentally integrated into one whole.

But corrupt scholars like these often become more and more greedy.

After the emperor arrived at the foot of Mount Tai with great difficulty, they actually made another request, hoping that the emperor could climb Mount Tai according to their wishes and with piety.

At last,
The corrupt scholars were contentedly fed by the Qin people's iron fist.

The emperor finally chose to climb to the top of this sacred mountain in the East in his own way and meet the black bird that flew over his head when he was a child.

When He Bo heard that the emperor was actually very clear about the Confucian scholars' plans, he couldn't help but touch the two feathers on his head with his wings.

He said, “You have really grown up.”

He is a qualified ruler.

"Then why don't you come sit over here?"

He Bo pointed at the ground, and a furry blanket appeared, then he continued to invite the emperor to take a seat.

He is the god of Mount Tai.
When friends come from afar, of course we should be more enthusiastic.

As an adult,

The emperor should be polite when necessary!

But the emperor still ignored him and walked to the side to look at the scenery.

Seeing that he was trying to "keep his distance", He Bo jumped and landed on the emperor's head.

The emperor was furious.
The bird must be pulled down and severely punished.

But although the Blackbird looks heavy, it is actually very light.

And he has wings.

"You're stupid!"

"I can fly!"

The emperor chased him in the small open space on the top of the mountain. After a few chases, he was out of breath, his face flushed red with anger and fatigue.

Seeing him like this, He Bo said to him, "Since you want to live forever, you must take good care of your body."

"Don't take those pills. You should go to bed at the appointed time every day instead of forcing yourself to continue reading memorials."

"Look at you, you're only forty years old, and you're out of breath after just a few steps."

He Bo thought of the emperor's stubborn look when he was climbing the mountain, walking for a while and resting for a while but refusing to give up, and sighed.

The emperor said, "Ha!"

"Would a being like you care about ordinary people?"

He looked a little anxious, and his cold expression finally faded away.

"I am the emperor, the Son of Heaven!"

"I don't need your care!"

If I had not offered sacrifices to the gods on Mount Tai,

If I had not become the ruler of this world,
Will this bird appear in front of me again?
The emperor could tell from his words that the bird had actually been by his side for all these years.

But he just didn't show up and didn't speak!

This must be intentional!
(End of this chapter)